The multi-awarded Slumdog Millionaire movie follows the lives of Salim and Jamal, two of the world’s 1 billion squatters. Salim and Jamal are not real people, but the story—the story of poverty, violence, corruption, hopelessness, and hope—is very real.
Two days ago, I visited Barangay Pinagbuhatan, one of Manila’s many squatter communities. It looked and felt like scenes from the Oscar-winning movie. But this was not a movie set, and these kids were not actors. These were real people, and this was real life.
I walked through narrow sewage-filled allies, past tiny shacks to the home of Emily—one of our Real Life Foundation scholars. Emily’s mom was gracious, kind, and hospitable. Their home was smaller than my office. I could almost touch the right and left walls at the same time and could easily place both palms on the ceiling while standing flat-footed. There was no furniture. How does a family with five kids live in a home smaller than my office?
I looked through the hole in the “wall” into the next house. I looked up at the sky, through the holes in the roof, and wondered how any home in this community could survive even the weakest typhoon. Then I thought about the super-typhoons that flatten billboards and uproot trees, and I prayed for these families.
I left Barangay Pinagbuhatan burdened for the poor and determined to do more.
I pray that we will raise millions of pesos for our Real Life scholars tonight and tomorrow night at the “Van Hagen & Van Hagen: Brothers in Art 2” exhibit at The Gallery of The Peninsula Manila.
I really appreciate the Van Hagen bros and hundreds of others who volunteer their time, talent, and money to help our Real Life Scholars. If you are in Manila, drop by the Penn, buy some great Van Hagen art and help a scholar.